Geographic conditions for growing coffee

Coffee is a tropical plant requiring special climate and soil conditions that are necessary for high quality and yield.

Coffe trees are grown in the belt between latitudes 25° north and 30° south of the equatorial zone where there is heavy rain, 18 to 28 °C temperature and no frost.

The lowest temperature should not be less than 10 °C and the highest not more than 30 °C.

Coffee trees are grown from seeds or slips. They become fruitful within 3 or 4 years. A well-treated coffee tree can live more than 80 years but generally yield fruit for 30-40 years consecutively. The leaves of coffee trees are evergreen, leathery, dark, glossy and keen, and have wavy edges similar to daphne leaves.

The trees die in cold, and sudden temperature changes damage the trees. Since coffee trees need water, they should be grown in tropical regions where it rains regularly.

In coffee growing regions; the annual rainfall should be between 1.500 and 2.000 mm for Arabica and not less than between 2.000 and 3.000 mm for Robusta, and the pH level of soil should be between 5,5 and 6,5.

Good quality coffee cannot be obtained from bad green coffee. High quality aroma and taste can only be obtained from high quality green coffee. Coffee plant species and type, annual harvest quality, picking and stripping method, shipping and storage conditions, defects and moisture are the factors affecting coffee roasting quality.